Electric stop motion controller for knitting machines



June 23, 1942.

E. VOSSEN ELECTRIC STOP MOTION CONTROLLER FOR KNITTING MACHINES Filed Jan. 20, 1942 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 ATTORNEY June 23, 1942. v E. V OSSEN 2,

ELECTRIC STOP MOTION CONTROLLER FOE KNITTING MACHINES Filed'Jan. 20,1942 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR fat M130 1 ssE/v.

ATTORN EY Patented June 23, 1942 H'E'E ELECTRIC STOP MOTION CONTROLLER FOR KNITTING S Edward Vossen, Brooklyn, N. L, assignor to Stop Motion Devices Corporation, New York, N. Y a corporation of New York 2 Claims.

My invention is a controller mechanism intended for a working part in an electric stop motion system for the class of knitting machines and other machines equipped with rotary stop handles for cutting oil the driving current.

Controllers delivering a rotary thrust for the purpose of such machines must meet all the requirements of controllers delivering a direct thrust, such as certainty of operation, safeguards against accidental discharge, and in the interest of speed, a minimum and direct motion of working parts, and limitation of diificulties of friction and dust, and be light in weight, yet delivering a strong thrust.

Fig. 1 is a front elevation of the controller in unloaded position after removing both the front of the exterior housing and the face of the inner housing which serves as dust shield for the interior latch and electromagnetic elements. Figs. 2, 3, 4 show cross sections of the controller viewed from the lower side of Fig. 1. Fig. 2 is cut on the line 22 of Fig. l, outlining the working parts at that point, with the controller in unloaded or normal operative position, Fig. 3 shows a section at the line 3-3 of Fig. 1, with the controller in unloaded or discharged and inoperative position. Fig. 4 shows a section at the line 44 of Fig. 1, with the controller loaded.

The device has a housing I with ears 2-2 for attachment to the knitting machine. A rotary rod 3 passes longitudinally through said housing by means of apertures in the upper and lower sides thereof which serve as hearings in which the rod turns. Fixed on said rod exteriorly to said housing are, at the one end, a loading crank 4 for the operators convenience in turning said rod into loaded position, and at the other end a working crank 5 to transfer the rotation of said rod to the stop handle of the knitting machine. A spiral mainspring 6 is mounted on rod 3, and anchored with the one end in the floor of housing I and the other end in a collar attached to said rod. Limiting cam 8, adjacent to collar I, (Figs. 1, 3, 4) is fixed to said rod by means permitting its radial adjustment thereon so that the elongated part of its oval contour, intended to spare the working parts of the device against terminal impact on discharge of the controller by acting as buffer against the side of housing I, can be rotated to a position limiting the arc of rotation of rod 3 to the needs of the knitting machine stop handle.

Working cam9 (Figs. 1, 3, 4) is also fixed on said rod 3 adjacent to said limiting cam 8, its

cross section being approximately the sector of a circle somewhat less than a quadrant with radial sides somewhat concaved. The shoulders or cogs III, II, at the intersections of the respective radial sides with the circumference of cam 9 and constituting edges projecting the thickness of the cam parallel to rod 3 (Figs. 1, 3, 4) cooperate with the latch mechanism to control the movement of said rod 3. A lug I2 for electrical contact is fixed to the lower side of cam 9.

Within the outer housing I is an interior housing I3 (Fig. l) the front and rear sides of which are removable dust shields not shown in the drawings, and the sides of which, parallel to the lateral sides of housing I, constitute a frame to which the latch and electromagnetic elements are attached.

The electric circuit starting from source It passes through the thread-controlled circuit breaker I5, thence by the insulating screw I 6 into the interior of housing I, through the coils of the lectromagnet I'I mounted on but insulated from interior housing I3 and exterior housing l, thence by insulated connecting screw I8 attached to said housing to leaf spring I9 and, when torsion rod 3 is turned into loaded position, to contact lug I 2, cam 9, rod 3 and housing I, which is grounded.

Crossing transversely and approximately biseating inner housing I3 is the joist plate 20 (Fig. 1), with its end portions fixed to the sides of said inner housing. Armature 2| at right angles to the cores of electromagnet ll is hinged on its near edge on lugs extending from either end thereof and turning in bearings bored in said joist plate 20 and inner housing I3 respectively. An opposing leaf spring 22 between said armature 2| and th cores of said magnet attached at one end to said armature and resting its other end against one of the cores normally serves to hold them apart. At the interior end of the farther or free-swinging edge of said armature 2| a lug 23 extends to cooperate with the latch mechanism (Figs. 1, 2, 3, 4)

A latch lever 24 (Fig. 1) has a pivotal portion set in bearings in the upper side of interior housing I3 and in joist plate 20 and extending radially from said pivotal portion but at diverse angles from each other are a latch arm 25 spaced to cooperate with said lug 23 and a guide bar arm 26 spaced to cooperate with the rocker mechanism. When said latch lever is rotated to bring the outer or free end of latch arm 25 to said lug 23, a bevelled notch 21 out near the end of said latch arm engages said lug 23 and by means of said bevel passes over said notch against the resistance of spring 22, after which lug 23 released from the pressure of the bevel returns to normal position and engages the outer end of latch arm 25, holding all parts of latch lever 24 locked in position. (Figs. 1, 4.) The pivotal portion of said latch lever 24 is hollowed away toward its pivot for a portion of its length (Fig. 1) to form a recess 28 to receive locking tongue 29 of the rocker mechanism.

Longitudinally set in interior housing I3 is a pivot rod 30 (Figs. 1, 4) turning in an upper bearing in the ceiling of said housing and a lower bearing in a lateral stud extending fromthe side wall thereof. Turning on pivot 30 is a rocker member the portion of which toward the rotary rod is in shape approximately that of an angle iron having sides 3| and 32 (Figs. 1, 3, 4) and the interior portion of which consists of studs fixed to the interior side 3| for pivot bearings and said interior arm or locking tongue 29 joining the rocker member at the V of the angle iron. Mounted on pivot 33 (Figs. 1, 4) is a wire spring 33 one end of which bears against the fixed interior housing and the other end against said rocker member to rotate it, as seen from below, counter clockwise in the direction of torsion rod 3.

When the controller is in discharged or inoperative position (Fig. 3) mainspring 3 has ex erted its force over its full path and rotated rod 3 till stopped by the impact of limiting cam 3 against housing I. In this position the pressure of wire spring 33 has rotated the rocker member on pivot 33 till the side 32 of the angle iron portion of said rocker has been stopped by meet ing the circumferential side of working cam 9. With the rocker member in this limited state of rotation the locking tongue 29 thereof falls short of entering the hollowed recess 28 in the transverse pivotal portion of latch lever 24 and bears against guide bar arm 26 of said lever, withholding latch arm 25 from rotating into contact with lug 23 of the armature. In this position contact lug l2 on cam 3 is rotated out of electrical connection with leaf spring l9.

To load the controller for normal operation the operator inserts the thread into the end detector or knot detector circuit closer, which remains open, then turns crank 4 upwards (Fig. 1) or clockwise (Figs. 2, 3) against the force of mainspring 6 until shoulder ll (Figs. 1, 3, 4) of the working cam 9 passes beyond the edge of side 32 of the angle iron portion of the rocker member and into the shelf or angle between said side and side 3| thereof, whereupon said side 32 is rotated by the force of wire spring 33 on said rocker forward and in behind said shoulder I I This clockwise rotation of the angle iron portion of said rocker at the same time rotates the interior locking tongue 29 into the recess 28 of the pivotal portion of the latch lever 24 (Fig. 4) where said tongue presses against latch arm 25 to rotate it clockwise till the bevelled notch 21 thereon meets, presses aside and advances beyond lug 23 of the armature. Said lug after having passed through said bevelled notch returns to its normal position under pressure of opposing spring 22 and engages latch arm 25 (Figs. 1, 4), locking the latch lever and the rocker member with its locking tongue 29 and an angle iron side 32 into position, thereby holding rod 3 from any rotation by impulsion of mainspring 6. -With cam 9 thus fully turned into loaded position, contact lug 12 connects with leaf spring l9.

When conditions in the travelling thread cause the end detector or knot detector ii to close the circuit the resulting current energizes electromagnet II, which draws to itself armature 2| against opposing spring 22 till lug 23 on one end of the free edge of said armature comes opposite notch 21 in the latch arm 25 and unlocks said arm to rotate. The unlocking of arm 23 unlocks the entire rocker 24 to rotate, including guide bar arm 23 which when in locked position has restrained locking tongue 23 of the rocker member within the recess. The locking tongue 29 and with it the entire rocker member being thus released to rotate, all' obstruction is removed from movement of rotary rod 3, and under the impulse of mainspring 3 the rod completes its arc of rotation to the limit fixed by the impact of cam 3 against the side of the housing, and this rotation is transferred by means of working cranklonsaidrodtothestnphandleofthe knitting machine. The rotation also disconnects lug l2 from leaf spring l3, breaking the electrilc glizait as soon as the controller is discharged.

1. In an electric stop mechanism for power driven machines, the combination with a circuit closer governed by conditions in the material operated on of a controller comprising a housing. means of connecting said housing with the machine, opposing apertures in the ends of said housing, a rod passing through said housing and apertures and rotatable axially in said apertures as bearings, means on said rod to transfer its rotary motion to the mechanism of said machine, a spring mounted on said rod and anchored at one end in said rod and at the other end in said housing and exerting on said rod rotary tension in one direction, means of limiting the arc of rotation of said rod, a cam member fixed and mounted on said rod, the rotating portion of said cam being contoured to form a cog member, a rockable holding member pivoted on said housing and cooperating with said 00: member, an electromagnet, an armature, means connecting said rockableholding member with said armature so that when in normal operation the circuit is open and the rod is rotated gainst said spring to the proper angle said armature through said connecting means engages said rockable member and fixes it in position holding said cog, cam and rod against rotation under actuation of said spring. and when said circuit is closed said electromagnet is energized and shifts said armature into position releasing said connecting means and rockable member and said rod rotates under actuation of said spring and transfers its motion to the mechanism of said machine.

2. In a stop mechanism'for power driven machines, in combination with a release mechanism governed by conditions in the material operated on, a housing. a rod rotating axially in apertures in said housing as bearings, a rotary spring actuating said rod in one direction, means to limit the arc of rotation of said rod, means attached to said rod to transfer the rotary motion thereof to the stop mechanism of the machine, a cam mounted on and fixed to said rod, the outer rotating surface of said cam being shaped to form a cog, a holding member pivoted to said housing and cooperating with said cog, means connecting said holding member with said release mechanism, sothat when in normal operation said rod is rotated against said spring into set position said holding member engages said cog and holds said cam and rod a ainst rotation, and when conditionsin the material operated on actuate said release mechanism said holding member is released and disengages said cog, and said rod under actuation of said spring rotates and conveys its said motion to the stop mechanism of the machine.

EDWARD VOSSEN. 

